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October 3, 1998 Huerta de San Vicente, Granada, SPA
Lou Reed gave a concert in Granada at the Huerta de San Vicente, the last residence of Federico García Lorca, his musical vision of the work of the poet from Granada in an intimate and acoustic concert. Reed decided to give his performance in Granada a special tone as a tribute to Lorca. The joined a long list of artists of international relevance who have played the Huerta de San Vicente to offer performances in tribute to the author. Lou's performance in Granada sparked controversy due to the limited capacity of the Huerta de San Vicente which only allows access for 300 people. Lou Reed settled the controversy about the elitism of a very expensive concert (7 million) for only 300 spectators of which a good part were invited. The New York rocker, upon learning that some sectors had criticized those aspects, offered that the concert be free and that the next day there would be another in a place with greater capacity, although his manager did not allow it because they would need equipment, technicians and personnel. Reed asked for a radio station to broadcast the concert live so that everyone could hear it. Canal Sur Radio broadcast it from the Huerta de San Vicente. In addition, Lou promised to return to Granada on November 26 for a concert with Patti Smith, Raimundo Amador, Compay Segundo, Morente and Tomatito, at the Palacio de los Deportes. Setlist: I'll Be Your Mirror - Perfect Day - The Kids - Vicious - Trade in - Street Hassle (parts I & II) - NYC Man - Turning Time Around - Talking Book - Set the Twililight Reeling - Future Farmers of America - Legendary Hearts - Hang On To Your Emotions - New Sensations - Riptide - Dirty Blvd. - Romeo Had Juliette Poet in the Garden of San Vicente by Jesus Arias (El Pais 4/10/1998) A full-speed train passed Friday night through the Huerta de San Vicente, in Granada, the last residence of Federico García Lorca. And it happened with such force that even the trees changed color. It was a train called Lou Reed that, before just over 300 people, offered an overwhelming concert by machine-gunning with acoustic guitars. It was such a round performance that even the New York singer himself, known for his stone face, allowed himself the luxury of smiling several times. If Lorca was a poet in New York, Reed was a poet in the house of Lorca. The performance of the author of Take a walk on the wild side was preceded in Granada by a bitter citizen controversy over the fact that Reed offered a single concert in a place with as little capacity as the previous courtyard of the Huerta de San Vicente and with such a high contract, close to six million. The tickets to 3,000 pesetas had aroused the protests of the people of Granada, who considered the concert as an act for the privileged, far from the popular air of Lorca. Upon sounding the first chord, Lou Reed was responsible for putting things in place. The singer, who arrived Thursday night, was informed of the controversy by Laura García-Lorca, the director of the Huerta de San Vicente and organizer of the concert. He himself proposed as a solution to offer two concerts on Friday, one free, in the middle of the street, and another, the official one. The technical impossibility of moving the sophisticated equipment spoiled the idea. Finally, Reed gave up all rights for the concert to be broadcast, complete and live, on Canal Sur Radio. Thus, in an intimate and relaxed atmosphere, in which the spectators could see and hear it as if they had it in their living room, Reed explained with his group the most historical of his repertoire, from the obsessive Vicious to Street Hassel, passing by Romeo and Juliet, Dirty Boulevard, Perfect day or even a theme from the legendary band Velvet Underground, I "ll be your mirror. Clothed by a new sound technique, the feedbucker, which makes acoustic guitars sound crystal clear like water, surrounded by luminous trees that seemed to be drawn from some picture of German expressionism, as if he were playing in a moonlight in a forest, Lou Reed admitted that he was excited to be playing in front of García Lorca's house, but he did not play any of the new themes on which he is working on the work of the poet from Granada. "I think he did not dare," Laura García-Lorca confessed yesterday, "because the poet's voice is already implicit in his own music" The author of Sweet Jane looked excited and happy. He smiled at the musicians, he smiled at the audience. A few hours earlier he was playing the original guitar of García Lorca and, with his voice somewhat broken, he said: "I want a guitar exactly the same as this one for the rest of my days." He ordered a reply immediately. Soon, Reed will appear live with the twin sister of the guitar of his favorite poet. The concert was historic. "As powerful as the Rolling Stones in Malaga," they commented among the public. The truth is that few groups create atmospheres and nuances with as much depth and intensity as Lou Reed's. The band proved to be live even better than the last live album released last year, Perfect night. The audience was enthusiastic and the musicians, even more so. It was they who, after a second bis, began to hum the leader of the chorus of Take a walk on the wild side, as did the assistants. "Do you want to play that song?" Asked guitarist Mike Rathke. "Of course". And then it was delirium. Lorca went to New York in search of his poetry and Reed came from New York to Granada to find her.